Width Of Laser Beam Used To Cut Sheet Metal

Fiber lasers vs co 2.

Width of laser beam used to cut sheet metal. A fast repeatable and highly accurate process which is ideal for high production runs. 1in 2 645mm 2 a 100 watt laser can achieve a power density of 1550 watts mm 2 in a spot size that is 0 6452mm 2 a spot size that is 0 6452mm 2 has a diameter of of 28mm or 280 micron using area pi d 2 2 280 micron. If you d like to learn more about ablative laser cutting check out this article on micron scale manufacturing. A series of mirrors and lenses direct and focus a high energy beam of light onto the surface of the sheet where it is to be cut.

Precise clean cutting and often does not require further processing. In modern industrial production laser cutting is more widely used in sheet metal plastics glass ceramics semiconductors and materials such as textiles wood and paper. Co 2 lasers use an electromagnetically stimulated gas typically a mixture. When the beam strikes the surface the energy of the beam melts and vaporizes the metal underneath.

For example when cutting 20mm mild steel with a 3kw laser the sample reached 190 c using high beam quality 3 2 mm mrad but the same cut profile only reached 110 c using lower beam quality 5 8 mm mrad with all other parameters kept the same. Laser cutting uses a high powered laser to cut through sheet metal. Sheet metal cutting requires a power density of 10 6 watts in 2 source. Given its dominance in the sheet metal cutting industry this article focuses on laser fusion cutting.

Focal spot size vs divergence for a laser with 4 5mm mread beam quality delivered through a ø100µm fibre. In the next few years the application of laser cutting in precision machining and micro machining will also gain substantial growth. Lasers were first used for cutting in the 1970s. On the other hand reactive gas cutting using oxygen assist gas is used for mild steel cutting and requires a large focal spot with high divergence.

The two most common types of laser cutting machines are fiber laser and co 2.